Have you ever seen a swimming chicken?
That's what I think of whenever I see a funny-looking bird called an American coot. This water bird, with a charcoal-colored body and a white beak, is about the same size as a chicken. When on land, it walks and feeds like one, too. But it is more comfortable dabbling for food in shallow water.
A coot also might be mistaken for a duck, but its beak is thick and stout rather than flat. And, it is chunky like a chicken with short wings and four-toed, chickenlike legs. Moreover, it tends to bob its head back and forth as it swims.
Similar birds are the common and purple gallinules, which are farther south, and the rarely seen rails that hide in marsh grasses and cattails.
The common gallinule, or moorhen, also is dark-gray but has red on its face. There are coots in Europe and South America, but they are somewhat larger and are considered separate species.
Like ducks and unlike chickens, coots migrate. In November, they arrive in the Carolinas from the Great Lakes and northern Plains. At Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge or Lake Mattamuskeet near the coast, you might see several hundred during the winter months. At Salem Lake, I have seen rafts of several dozen during migration, but only a few stay the season. Also, look for them at smaller local ponds and at marshes like the one at Tanglewood. In April, they return north to nest.
Breeding pairs of coots build their nests on floating platforms of dead marsh vegetation in shallow water protected by living grasses and bulrushes. Parents raise up to a dozen young, which follow them around to get their meals.
In winter, coots might venture out on open water, but they usually stick close to the shoreline to feed. Plant material makes up most of their diet, but they also eat minnows, tadpoles, insects and even the eggs of other birds. They usually don't let you get too close, voicing their "kuk-kuk-kuk" sound and paddling off at any hint of danger. Flying is only a secondary option, as they must flap their wings furiously and run some distance across the water to get airborne.
While foraging, coots might dabble at the surface, upend like ducks or even dive. In addition, they forage on land, on mudflats or even in grassy fields. During migration season, Matt Windsor, the superintendent at Pilot Mountain State Park, has found their remains at the park summit. On land, they are much more vulnerable to predators, such as owls or foxes.
- The 112th Audubon Christmas Bird Count starts Dec. 14. Between then and Jan. 5, counters tally how many birds and bird species they find in a single day.
The first count was held on Christmas Day in 1900 as an alternative to a traditional holiday "side-hunt" competition to see how many birds participants could shoot.
Last year, 2,215 counts were conducted throughout the United States, Canada and Latin America.
The Winston-Salem count covers most of Forsyth County and will be on Dec. 31. To join a count team, contact Chuck Thompson at cosmo6190@yahoo.com. Forsyth Audubon also will conduct a count at Hanging Rock State Park on Dec. 18. Send emails to pdickins@gmail.com. Novice birders are welcome.
- On Dec. 10, the Audubon Second Saturday Birdwalk will be at Washington Park. Meet at 9 a.m. at the parking area off of South Broad Street. For details, send an email to reiskind@earthlink.net.
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